Au Revoir, Mirage
by btamamura
Summary: After Kuroudo has his battle against Gavin, it's time for him to pay his final respects to the gear which brought him so far in the last five years.


Au Revoir, Mirage

yamitammy

"I'm home, Mama," Kuroudo Marume called as he removed his shoes. He put on his slippers and went straight to his bedroom. As soon as he was in his peaceful haven, he removed the gear box from his shoulder. He opened the light blue box and tenderly lifted out a purple Crush Gear. It was Shooting Mirage, his first ever Crush Gear which had given him five years of great gear fights. Today was Mirage's final official battle. He'd battled against Euro-Griffon's Gavin Connor Hammer in order to defend the Japanese Griffon Club, the team he was captain of until his fall-out.

He frowned as he surveyed the damage. It looked as if a playful kitten had got hold of it, there were a few scratches where Grifeed's claws dug in. Not only that, there was also a hole in Mirage's battery box so it could slide, just like a VT Chassis gear. It was his gear fighter instinct which had brought it on. His best friend Kyousuke Jin had offered to repair Shooting Mirage, but Kuroudo declined. In his opinion, Shooting Mirage had completed its main mission.

'First Kouya loses Garuda Eagle during the Butoukan Cup.' He'd never forget the look on Kouya Marino's face as Garuda Eagle fell completely apart. 'Dino Spartan gets critically damaged, but at least he gets repaired.' Dino Spartan had been broken in half when Jin battled Kishin Okawa. 'Then Racing Bull is severely damaged.' Racing Bull's motor gears disintegrated when Jirou Oriza fought against Brad Fincher to defend Taki Hiroomi. Luckily, Alex Borg is building a new gear for the ex-baseball pitcher. 'Now, it's time for Shooting Mirage to retire.'

Kuroudo placed his beloved gear on one side of a photo frame which held three photos. The first photo was taken five years ago. It consisted of him and his best friends when he was still living in France. The next one was of his former team. Everybody looked rather joyous in it---Mitsuke Ohmori, Kazuya Shichigawa, Jin and himself---as they had won a tournament. The final photo contained his current team, the Tobita Club. He smiled as he remembered that particular photo shoot. Jin didn't want to be in the shot so Kouya had to drag him into it and hold him there.

The shelf he had placed Mirage on was better known as the memories shelf. It had a family portrait which had been taken when he was four, before his father became ill. On the other side of the frame, there were four tiny pieces of wood. They were what was left of the wooden wheels his friends had made for his first ever gear fight. There was a colourful box in which he kept his letters. It was a gift from the blonde girl back in France. There was a mini photo frame with a group photo in it which he'd received from Avril Juillet. Of course there was a photo consisting of just him and Jin. It had been taken before the microchip incident. Now, Shooting Mirage has taken its place on the shelf, along with Kuroudo's other keepsakes.

"Shooting Mirage, I'll never forget about the great gear fights we had. From our first to our last. I'm sorry about the damage you took today, but thanks for going on. The attacks you've used are fantastic and I know you enjoy using them, otherwise you wouldn't do them. Lightning Flash, Spinning Tornado, Lightning Tornado and of course your best finishing move Ote-toi de mon Soleil. You're a fantastic Crush Gear and it has been an honour having you in the ring for each and every gear fight. It was you who defeated our rivals---Vichie and his gear, whatever he called it, he never said, as well as Eddie and Break-Nine. We both wanted to bring them down and that's why we won. Mirage, we never gave up. Even if things were tough, you kept on battling and didn't want to ever give up. Today was your final official gear fight. But, I ask of one more favor, Mirage. Please give me the inspiration I need to design your evolution. The World Cup is a tough competition and, I hate to admit it, you might not survive it. What if we had to face Takeshi and Gaiki? Or Wang Hu and Tigeraid? Or even Quo-Vadis' U-Ya and his Black Garuda Eagle? You'd get destroyed. I might even have to face Gavin again. He and Gavin inflicted a lot of damage on you today. That's why I think it's best that you retire. This is for you, Mirage, so you won't have to wind up like Garuda Eagle or any other fully destroyed gear. Thanks for everything, Mirage. I will not say adieu to you. I will say au revoir as this is not your farewell, just a see you soon." He closed his eyes and took a deep breath. He opened his eyes again. He went to lay down on his bed and have a bit of a doze. He was feeling a bit tired from his big day. 'Au revoir, Mirage. Till we battle again.'

Owari, Finis, The End

Kuroudo-Shooting Mirage holds a lot of sentimental value of my time back in France. It was hard moving onto using a new gear, but I know Mirage understood. Yes, to me Crush Gear are more than machines. They're a gear fighter's partner. The gear are a part of us. That's why it depresses us to no end when our gear are destroyed.

Anyway, merci for reading this. The authoress doesn't own Crush Gear Turbo. Please review. Please don't flame. Please don't sue.


End file.
